Minorities under threat from male traditionalists

| Tuesday March 23, 2010 00:00

The recent report by leaders of Botswana Council of Churches (BCC) and some members of Dikgosi on so-called moral regeneration is a case in point. Instead of bringing together a group of diverse religions, age groups, ethnic groups and even civil society groups, government decided that the arbiters of social values, perceived or real, could be located in the house of Dikgosi and at the offices of the BCC. This nation is a secular state. This is not a dream or a wish from this newspaper. This is a fact, according to the Constitution at least. No matter how strongly one may feel about a particular religion this state is not a Christian state. Neither is it founded on any religious principle. This is a fact that cannot be affected by the government of the day. It is the very foundation of this state. We do not say this because we have any reason to doubt the sincerity of those among us who are Christians. No, we say this because the founders of this nation deemed it necessary to keep religion out of our political landscape for a good reason. We have to learn how incorporating religious fundamentalism into the political arena poses problems for religious minorities.However, this is not the only problem we have with this new direction this country seems to be taking.  It would seem that those who have the reins seem to have a general propensity to disregard the inherent variety of interests and even views that a society like Botswana has. Recent pronouncements on the youth, indicating a culture of talking down to young people is the very height of this new political culture. We are told that young people are the very embodiment of evil in this society, in the meantime there is no attempt to harness the inherently varied input of the youth before coming up with these pronouncements. The recent study on social values left out a majority of ethnic groups, because by its very nature this society is multiethnic and we know that our ethnic make-up has not been addressed by the representation at the Ntlo ya Dikgosi.

GU deserve our support

Gaborone United's exploits in the CAF Champions League should not go unnoticed. The Gaborone side has become the pride of the nation with their brilliant displays against some of the best clubs in the continent. GU accounted for South African side, Orlando Pirates in the preliminary stages and were ruthless against Curepipe Starlight from Mauritius on Saturday. This is the time to break allegiances and rally behind GU as they represent Botswana. The Reds are only three matches away from the money-spinning league stage and to achieve this feat they need every ounce of support from us. When GU basks in glory, the whole nation will join in the carnival. The Botswana flag will be recognised throughout the continent. To GU, the battle has not been won but it has just begun; determination should carry you through.

                                                                               Today's thought

'Fundamentalism is not a phenomenon limited to religion. Any belief system can become intolerant and give rise to violence. Whether one likes it or not, humanity is 'wired' for myth. Mutual tolerance is the only way.'

                                                                 - Michael Kingavid Strassburger